The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-06-16

Alcohol may be defined to be the
intoxicating principle Of all spirit
uous liquors; highly rectihed or pure
spirit, obtained by distillation Of the
fermented solution or Infusion OF any
substance containing sugar, and thus
capable of undergoing vinous fer
mentation. Alcohol is without doubf.
the real principle upon which ply si-
clans rely in those compounds W hich
90 under the generic term Of spirit
uous liquors. As the result of most
careful scientific observation upon the
part of number of competent OBJ
servers as to the effect Of alcohol upon
the human body in health, 1t may be
stated with absolute certainty that 1t
is antagonistic to all physiological
operations and furnishes no aid what
ever to any vital process, but on the
other hand the normal activities are
diminished, as manifested by de-
creased muscular power and a de-
pressed temperature.
DIR. N. S. Davis, the organizer of the
medical profession in the United
States, as result of his own most
careful observations and experiments,
combined with the experimental re
search of number Of medical men in
England, France and the United
States. has formulated the following
propositions:
First-.That alcohol, when taken
diluted or in the form of fer
mented or distilled spirits, is
rapidly absorbed without change,
carried into the blood, and with that
fluid brought into contact with every
structure and part of the human body.
Second That while circulating In
the blood its presence retards those
molecular or atomic changes by which
nutrition, disintegration and secretion
are maintained, and the phenomena OF
life continued.
Third-That its presence retards
the elimination of waste matter, i'm
pairs nervous sensibility, lessons mus
cular excitability and lowers the tenn
perature of the body.
Fourth-That part at least land
from the testimony Of others, would
say the whole) Of the amount taken is
finally eliminated or thrown out ofthe
system with the excretions without
having undergone any appreciable
chemical change. These facts are as
we'll established as any in the domain
of physiology or in the whole Geld of
natural science, and they point, with
all the clearness and force Of a mathe-
NAUTICAL demonstration, to the conclu-
sion that alcohol is in no sense food,
neither furnishing material for the It's
sues nor fuel for combustion, nor yet
generating either nervous or muscular
power.
We are therefore forcibly brought
to the conclusion that alcohol is es-
sentially poison, antagonizing
some ofthe most important interstitial
char, .es upon which the vital forces
are dependent, and is the fruitful
source when habitually used of the
most serious and fatal diseases, which
the physician is constantly called upon
to treat; which can be demonstrated
by numerous facts, readily drawn from
the standard literature Of the profes.
sion. On the other hand any compen-
sating advantage alcohol may have in
the relief of diseases, is more than
counterbalanced in the incalculable in
Jury inflicted in the production oi dis
eases, and the Generalization of hui
manity. by the countenance given to
its use and traffic, through its recon-
mcndation as medical agent. am
fully persuaded that alcohol has no
more power IN rectifying morbid pro-
cesses, and removing disease than it
has in promoting the vital processes in
a state OF health | will 60 further
and assert that alcoholic liquors, what
ever may there be asserted, but unde-
monstrated advantages, have no abso
lutely defincd place in therapeutics,
and can not be proven to occupy any
distinctive position as agents tor the
treatment OF disease. The views in
our approved medical works, as to
their application, are the most discor-
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